Refrigerated freight vehicle



Ap 7, 1942. J. J. CHIARD'xo REFRIGERATED FREIGHT VEHICLE Filed Jan. l1,1940 QN. Ww om 2. QN n. n w um NP., ma. ,n .0 Tm N W Q ww wm n Q ICN AEm J DE N MB n D \\H QN. d/ w IAu W 1//\ l/H, LW p \\\,NN .wn M Q 1.@ ll@ IIIIIIILW Wm om MN nm w qm NQNKN NIIY @VN HN .mw om menta @1,19422,273,827

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I I anr'nlcnnnnzzqrscnr VEHICLE ApplicationJanuary ,(01. 6,2*19

Claims.

.The object of the invention is to provide improvements in refrigeratorcars broadly, and especially in those which are sub-divided into aplurality of compartments.v

Another and more specific object is to provide aV car of this class, inwhich the several compartments are'strictly independent of one an other,so far as they may be loaded and unloaded at will and without disturbingthe contents of the remaining one or more compartments, but are sointer-connected by air ducts with their respective end and intermediateice bunkers, or equivaient sources of co1d, that a remarkably uniformdegree both of temperature and humidity is maintained throughout the caras a whole, thereby entirely eliminating so-called black rot, mildew,mold and similar forms of objectionable contaminating and destructivemedia.

A further and more specific object is to provide a car of this type, inwhich there are provided the usual end ice bunkers and in additionthereto at is shown as comprising a floor I, resting upon least one morecentrally located bunker, it being understood that one such additionalbunker may be located in the exact center, or spaced to one side thereofin order to provide compartments of diierent capacities, or a. pluralityof such additional bunkers may be employed, but in any case there areprovided apertures in the upper and lower portions of the bunker wallsfor the relatively free circulation of the air within the car.

There is also preferably provided a false inner ooring of slats, uponwhich the basket, box, barrel or other contents of the respectivecompartments rest, said inner flooring being spaced well above the oorof the car, and adapted to receive cracked ice both prior to the initialloading operation, and also to receive the cracked ice that eventuallyfalls from above the packages, as the latter are unloaded in whole or inpart from each of said compartments, following which the presence ofsuch ice still further contributes to the low temperature of theinterior of the car.

' In addition to the foregoing, there is provided a system oi' drainsfor leading the water of the meiing ice from the ice bunkers and alsofrom the intervening storage spaces towards the exterior of the car,while the several discharge outlets of such drainage system areeffectively closed by means of traps, against the intake of hot air fromimmediately above therailway tracks upon which the car is mounted.

With the objects thus briefly stated, the invention comprises furtherdetalls of construction and operation, which are hereinafter fullybrought out in the following description, when longitudinal trusses 2,in turn supported by the usual trucks 3, and provided with the usualcoupling devices I ,for operatively connecting said car in a train. Fromthe transversely opposite edges of said oor rise side walls 5 througheach oi which. extend a plurality of doorways B, normallyclosed by anydesired ype of door 1, while the adjacent ends of said sid ed byupwardly extending end walls 8. Finally, the upper edge portions of saidside and end walls are spanned by a top wall or roof 9, which may be ofany desired cross section, such for instance as that shown in Figs. Iand II.

Within said car and spaced from the end walls B are vertically extendingpartitions l0, providing between them and the respective end wallsbunkers II in which cakes of ice I2 are stored, access to said bunkersbeing through one or more apertures of lling ports I3 in the said roof,surrounded by iianges Il and adapted to be spanned in warm weather byremovable and angularly adjustable closures I5. The lower portion ofeach of said bunkers is provided with a removable ialse oor I6, formedof spaced slats upon which the blocks of ice I2 directly rest, whileeach of said bunker partitions is provided with a set of aperturescomprising airinlets I1 adjacent to the roof of the car, a second set ofapertures comprising air outlets I8 adjacent to the bottom of the carbut above the false bunker flooring I6, and preferably also a third setof apertures I9 beneath the level of the slatted flooring, each group ofapertures being for a purpose hereinafter described.

Located at any desired position within said carA and spaced from andbetween the bunker partitions IO is a third bunker 20, deiined by andbetween spaced bunker walls 2l and adapted to normally contain blocks ofice 22. This third bunker is deemed suilicient to illustrate theprinciples of operation herein involved, but is intended to representany desired number of bunkers in addition to those positioned at theends of the car. This third bunker space, like those first mentioned, issimilarly provided with a false slatted ilooring 23 spaced above theiloor I of the car,

walls are connectwhile the partitions 2I are provided in each case withat least three sets of apertures 24, 25 and 26,

corresponding with the apertures I1, I8 and I9;V

respectively, in the rst mentioned bunker par- `titions I0. On the otherhand, if desired each other closure 20h.

Within said car and upon the opposite side of the intermediate bunker 20are storage spaces 21, which are accessible entirely independently of ione another throughy the doorways 6, upon the opposite sides of the carand leading into each of said spaces respectively. Within the lower partof each storage space sa, false flooring 28 of spaced slats is provided,preferably in substantial alignment with the corresponding slattedlfioorings of the respective ice bunkers, each of said floorings, bothfor storage spaces and bunkers being removable at will for the purposeof cleaning beneath them, and when in operative position being spacedfrom about 4 to 6" above the upper surface of the car floor I. Asindicated in Fig. I of the drawing, the several storage spaces withinthe car may be filled either partially or entirely with either thesameor entheir place of origin to the particular metropolitan center orcenters, where they are unpacked *from the car andfromV which they aredistribpair of partition apertures I8 and I8 in the paruted to thevarious dispensing agencies. Having once lowered the temperature withineach storage space, the ice blocks within the bunkers Il and 20 willtend to insure the maintenance ofl the desired low temperature for aconsiderably tirely different commodities, which for purposes ofLillustration, are here represented as comprising goods contained inbaskets 29 in one compartment and in boxes or crates 30 'in thecompartment. These baskets, boxes,

crates, or other form of containers may be packed either in spacedrelation, as indicated in the left hand compartment, or may be packedclosely together, as indicated in the right hand space. In eitherarrangement loose, broken or cracked ice 3| may be thrown loosely overthe top of the containers when closely packed,

or both over the top and between the several `containers when looselypacked. In addition,

smaller particles of cracked ice may be initially placed beneath theslatted ooring, as also indicated in Fig, I, or may be initially omittedfrom this latter location as desired.

In the operation of a car of this type, the same may be loaded in eachof its storage spaces at a single location, or one storage space may beloaded at one place and the car then shifted to another place before theother of the said storage spaces is loaded. In any such case, it is wellrecognized that the fruit, vegetables, or the like placed within the carare characterized by a considerable degree of so-called eld or groundheat. It is for the elimination of this initial heat that the ice 3l isfrequently thrown over and about the containers 29 and 30, and duringthe elimination of such heat most of this ice melts, but in the meantimethe`temperature both of the containers with their contents, and thesurrounding atmosphere of the storage space will have been lowered tothe desired degree, at which the particular perishable commodities beingtransported will be preserved, for at least a sufficient time to permitthem to be carried from greater period. Furthermore, bypositioning anadditional one or more ice bunkers intermediate of the ends of the car,and interconnecting such additional bunker in the air circulating systemof the car, the heretofore objectionable and in fact minous black rot ofcertain perishable fruits and vegetables is entirely eliminated.

In addition to the foregoing, it is to be noted that the naturalcirculation of air through bunkers and storage spaces isv maintained toa far greater degree than in the absence of the intermediate bunker 20.In fact, in refrigerator cars of present-day construction, the center ofthe car is so remote from the ice bunkers at its opposite ends, that theair at such central point remains practically static, thus in timeabsorbing heat andpermitthg a substantial rise in temperature oi' theproducts in the center of the car, and simultaneously tendingtoencourage the growth of mildew, mold and such objectionabledevelopments and growths. Furthermore,

vrelatively warm air rising within a given storage space, if unable toflow freely into the adjacent end compartment Il by way of the upperaperture I1, and thence downwardly past the ice I2 and again into saidstorage space by way of either or both of the apertures IB and I9, ortheir equivalent vertically enlarged aperture, will be enabled to flowinto the intermediate bunker 20 through the upper aperture 24, and uponcoming in contact with the ice blocks 22 will .be enabled to passdownwardly, and thence into the storage space through the lowerapertures 25 'and 26 or their equivalent vertically enlarged aperture,as hereinbefore described.

During the melting of the ice while in said bunkers, and also in saidstorage spaces, the resulting water will gravitate downwardly throughthe slatted flooring and upon reaching the upper surface of the bottomwall or floor I, will eventually find its way into longitudinallyextending gutters 32 in and adjacent to the laterally opposite limits insaid floor. From said gutters the water can then drain downwardlythrough outlet pipes 33, which terminate within and below the upperlevel of cup-shaped traps 34, which cooperate with said pipes to providea liquid seal, operative to prevent the intake of the much hotter airnormally in the region above the railroad track, upon which the car ischaracteristically mounted and moved. Other types of seals may of coursebe used as desired. Thus, the water from the melting ice is free to flowfrom the bottom of` the ear, but air of any sort and particularly hotair, is purposely and effectively prevented from entering through thesaid bottom wall or flooring. On the other hand, during cold weather inparticular, that is, when the outside temperature is at 32 F., or lower,and during a substantial portion of any trip, the several closures I5and 20h of the respective bunkers may be opened at such desired angleand in such direction, that the outside air will be drawn-into the carduring and as a result of the cars movement. Likewise, by properarrangement of the several closures in opposite directions, the coldoutside ai'r may be taken into a. bunker at one each compartment isindependent of that in the end and forced through the car and thence outof the bunker opening at the other end, or out of an intermediate bunkeropening, at the other end, or out of an intermediate bunker opening,exactly as desired.

Having described one embodiment of the invention, it is to be understoodthat the broad principles involved anticipate numerous variations in thedetails of construction, without departing from the spirit of theinvention as set forth in the appended claims, while additionalrenements may be added, if desired, as for instance the provision ofexterior means of identification for the interior compartments, as forinstance the use-of such symbols as A and B, which when used upon billsof lading readily denote which compartment is to be opened by a givenconsignee, and thus precluding the necessity of opening each in order todetermine their contents.

Also, it is to be understood that the present invention is equallyadapted to automobile trucks and trailers, wherefore the term vehicle isemployed to include any devices of this class, which are propelled fromplace to place either upon railways or highways.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire toprotect by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A refrigerator vehicle, comprising end ice bunkers and anintermediate ice bunker separated by independent storage compartmentshaving independent closure-controlled openings providing access thereto,a false apertured ooring in each of said compartments and a falseapertured oor in each of said bunkers, the inner walls of said endbunkers and both walls of said intermediate bunker beingprovided at Iother compartment, and the chilling effect of the intermediate bunkerbolsters that of the end bunkers independently, a longitudinallyextending gutter provided in the oor of each of said compartments, and adrain aperture for said gutter.

3. A refrigerator vehicle, comprising end ice bunkers and anintermediate ice bunker separated by independent storage compartmentshaving independent closure-controlled openings providing access thereto,a false flooring composed of spaced slats in each of said compartmentsand a false floor composed of spaced slats in each f of said bunkers,the inner walls of said end bunkers and both walls of said intermediatebunkerbeing provided at their upper extremities with inlet apertures,and adjacent to their lower extremities with outlet apertures both aboveand below said false floorings, a longitudinally extending gutterprovided in the oor of each of said compartments, and a drain aperturefor said gutter.

4. A refrigerator vehicle, comprising an end ice bunker, a second icebunker within. and spaced from the ends of said vehicle to provideindependent storage compartments, the-walls of' said bunkers being builtunitarily into the structure of the vehicle as rigid partitions andprovided in their upper and lower portions with apertures, independentmeans of access to said compartments, and a false ooring having spacedapertures, whereby the circulation of air within each compartment isindependent of that in the other compartment and flows beneath as wellas above objects resting uponl said ooring.

5. A refrigerator vehicle, comprising end ice bunkers and anintermediate ice bunker separated by independent storage compartmentshaving independent closure-controlled openings providing access thereto,the walls of said intermediate ice bunker being rigid and forming an'integral part of the vehicle structure, a fal'se flooring havingapertures in each of. said compartments, the inner walls of said endbunkers and both walls of said intermediate bunker being providedadjacent. to their upper and lower extremities with air-circulatingapertures.

JAMES J. CHIARDIO.

